New York Fashion Week’s September edition is running right through this week (Thursday the 10th to Tuesday the 15th, unveiling the Spring/Summer 2027 collections), which means Manhattan has turned into one long, glittering rehearsal for main character energy. Nobody, but nobody, wrote that script better than Carrie Bradshaw.
The trouble is, “dress like Carrie” has quietly become code for “buy fourteen tutus and hope for the best,” when actually her wardrobe ran on a tight, deliberate rotation of houses. Manolo Blahnik for the feet. Fendi for the arm. Dior for the drama. Vivienne Westwood for the corsetry (that wedding dress, need we say more). Recreating it properly means shopping with intention, not throwing tulle at the problem and hoping it sticks.
So we did the actual work. We tracked down fifteen current-season pieces, checked what’s really in stock this week, and priced every single one so you’re not left guessing at checkout. Some are eye-watering. A couple are genuinely attainable. All of them would make Carrie proud to be caught crossing Fifth Avenue in.
Valentino Garavani Crystal-Embellished Pleated Cady Mini Dress
How Carrie wears it: bare legs, the Fulcon sandals below, and absolutely no coat even though it’s fifty degrees outside.
Price: from around £2,300
Alessandro Michele’s Valentino Garavani does maximalist femininity better than almost anyone working right now, and this pleated cady mini, scattered with crystals across the bodice, is the kind of dress that makes the rest of the outfit irrelevant. Wear it with bare legs and call it a night (or, let’s be honest, an entire fashion week).
Isabel Marant Jany 100 Snake-Effect Leather Knee Boots
How Carrie wears it: over opaque tights with a mini skirt, on a day she’s decided she’s “done” with heels (she isn’t, not really).
Price: around £950
Carrie never actually wore Isabel Marant on screen, but she would have loved the label’s off-duty Parisian cool, and this season’s snake-effect knee boot has exactly the confident, slightly-too-cool energy her downtime wardrobe was missing. Pair with a mini skirt and forget you’re wearing heels at all.
Dior Long Draped Dress (Ecru Wool and Silk)
How Carrie wears it: saved for the one truly unhinged, era-defining moment. Think Paris, think a very dramatic entrance.
Price: £8,000, boutique only
Dior is the house behind Carrie’s most theatrical Paris-arc pieces (yes, including that newspaper dress), and this asymmetrical draped gown, finished with a bow at the shoulder and cut from a wool and silk blend, has the same wear-it-like-art quality. It isn’t available to buy online, which somehow makes it more Dior, not less. Book the boutique appointment.
Jenny Packham Embellished Rebecca Mini Dress
How Carrie wears it: with bare legs, second-hand drop earrings, and a taxi called the second the party starts winding down.
Price: £2,740
Tens of thousands of individually applied gold beads and sequins go into this Jenny Packham mini, and the effect is exactly as showstopping as that sounds. British glamour at its most unapologetic, and proof that a British label can do “New York energy” just as convincingly as anyone on Fifth Avenue.
Dolce & Gabbana Paneled Satin Bustier Midi Dress
How Carrie wears it: no jacket, no matter the weather. The bustier is the whole point, so nothing gets to cover it up.
Price: around £2,500
There’s a reason every stylist reaches for D&G when a client wants structure with drama. This satin bustier midi does the sculpted bodice and close-fitting pencil silhouette the house does better than almost anyone, and it photographs beautifully from every single angle. Don’t fight it with too many accessories. Let the dress win.
Manolo Blahnik Fulcon Jewel-Embellished T-Bar Sandals
How Carrie wears it: with everything. Literally everything. That’s the entire bit.
Price: £1,295
Come on, it’s Manolo Blahnik. Carrie says his name out loud more often than any character in television history, and this season’s Fulcon, a khaki satin T-bar with a bronze jewelled buckle, is exactly the kind of ornate, slightly impractical, entirely worth it shoe she’d have queued for. Wear them somewhere you can sit down often.
Dondé Esteban Guava Flores Silk Chiffon Midi Dress
How Carrie wears it: under a battered leather jacket, because contrast was always the whole game.
Price: around £430
We’ll be the ones to say it: you don’t need to spend four figures to get the ruffled, romantic, slightly chaotic energy Carrie’s wardrobe ran on. This newer label does exactly that in silk-blend satin and chiffon, with lace trim at the neckline and enough movement in the hem to make an entrance. Genuinely one of the best value pieces on this whole list.
Blumarine Floral-Appliqué Gabardine Crop Top
How Carrie wears it: under a blazer for brunch, alone with a maxi skirt by 9pm. Same top, two entirely different evenings.
Price: around £500 to £650
Blumarine has spent the last few years reviving Y2K opulence for a new audience, and this floral-appliquéd crop top is a masterclass in it. Wear it under the Vivienne Westwood blazer for daytime, or alone with a maxi skirt once the sun goes down. Either way, it’s doing more work than its size suggests.
Gucci Paparazzo Suede-Trimmed Shoulder Bag
How Carrie wears it: slung crossbody so both hands stay free for hailing cabs and holding a cosmopolitan.
Price: around £2,400 to £3,000
The Paparazzo shape is a genuine Gucci archive piece, reworked here in suede-trimmed leather with the house’s signature Web stripe and horsebit hardware at the flap. It’s roomy enough for a phone and cardholder and carries by hand, shoulder or crossbody, which is more flexibility than most bags at this price point bother offering.
Vivienne Westwood Bergere Cotton and Wool-Blend Blazer
How Carrie wears it: buttoned over next to nothing underneath. Structure with a wink, remember.
Price: around £900 to £1,400
Vivienne Westwood is one of Carrie’s actual designers, and Andreas Kronthaler’s tailoring keeps the house’s punk credentials fully intact. This blazer is the easiest way to wear Westwood without committing to a full corset moment, and it’ll outlast every micro-trend currently on the runway.
Zimmermann Belara Appliquéd Suede Wedge Sandals
How Carrie wears it: the pair she can actually survive a full day of shows in, without ever admitting that comfort mattered.
Price: around £550 to £850
Ethereal and romantic barely scratch the surface when it comes to describing a Zimmermann shoe. The Belara’s floral appliqués along a fine ankle strap and square toe give it just enough softness to counter a harder-edged outfit, and the wedge means you can actually walk between venues. Don’t discount the practicality. It matters more than you’d think during fashion week.
Anna Sui Belted Plush-Trimmed Woven Coat
How Carrie wears it: thrown over pyjamas on the way to get coffee, because that’s a genuine skill and she has it.
Price: check the current listing, stock moves fast on this one
Anna Sui’s whole aesthetic is romantic maximalism with a slightly witchy edge, which makes her coats the ultimate “arrived, no further explanation needed” piece. Throw this over jeans and a plain tee between shows and you’ve still made more of a statement than half the front row.
Aje Villa Ruffled Organza Midi Skirt
How Carrie wears it: with a plain white tee and sneakers, because the skirt should be doing all the talking, not the shoes.
Price: around £350 to £450
Nobody does ruffled organza with this much confidence right now. The Australian label built its reputation on sculptural silhouettes and artisanal fabric treatments, and this midi skirt delivers both, building volume through tiered ruffles that catch the light every time you move. Wear it with something plain on top and let the skirt do the talking.
Bode Bottleglass Cropped Fringed Beaded Satin Top
How Carrie wears it: with jeans, always jeans, because the top is already doing too much for anything else to compete.
Price: £1,235
Bode built its name on making everything feel like it’s been in your family for three generations, even when it’s brand new, and this fringed, hand-beaded satin top is a perfect example. Cropped, tactile, and genuinely unlike anything else on this list. Wear it with the Aje skirt and thank us later.
Fendi Baguette Bag (new-season colourway)
How Carrie wears it: tucked under the arm exactly the way it was designed to be. Some things you just don’t overthink.
Price: from around £2,000
We’ll say what everyone’s thinking: no bag has more legitimate Carrie Bradshaw credentials than this one. Created in 1997 and immortalised by the show until it became an actual proper noun (“It’s a Baguette!”), the underarm silhouette and FF clasp remain instantly recognisable in whatever new colourway Fendi turns out this season. Some things really don’t need reinventing.
Now go forth, dress accordingly, and try not to spill your cosmopolitan on any of it.
